Bull-wheel structure for drilling rigs



Dec. 11, 1923.

R. R. BLOSS BULL WHEEL STRUCTURE-FOR DRILLING RIGS 2 sheets-sheet 1 Filed Feb. 19. 1923 INVENTOR A TTORNH R. R. BLOSS BULL WHEEL STRUCTURE FOR DRILLING RIGS Filed Feb. 19. 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVEN TOR.

2 L ATTORNEY.

Dec. 11, 1923.

?atented Dec. 11, 3923.

UNITED sures RICHARD R BLOSS, OF COLUMBUS, OHIO, RICK 8c EQUIPMENT COMPANY, OF COL ASSIGNOR TO THE INTERNATIONAL DEB- UMBUS, OHIO, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

BULL-WHEEL STRUCTURE FOR DRILLING RIGS.

Application filed February 19, 1923. Serial No. 619,928.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD R. BLoss, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful improvements in The strains and stresses imposed upon bull wheel structures employed in drilling rigs are well known to those skilled in the art. Also, it is well known that bull wheel structures require movement from one lo-,

cation to another when they have served their purpose at the one location. There: fore, it is very desirable that bull wheel structures be of such construction that assembly .and disassembly can be effected readily and easily in a minimum length of time; and that they be of such structure as to facilitate transportation, all of which decreases the possibility of distortion or destruction and consequently increases the length of time between over-hauling periods, and the length of life of bull wheel structures whereb the maintenance cost of drillin rigs is ecreased.

l n accomplishing the above mentioned advantages, it is very essential that strength, ri 'dity of parts, weather endurance, case 0 manipulation and weight be borne in mind.

Furthermore, in connection with the usual wooden bull wheels, wearing of the bull ropes, which drive the bull wheels, takes place very rapidly. Much of this wearin is caused bythese ropes contacting with t e rather sharp corners of the tug wheel during the application of the bull ropes.

Still further, in some instances heretofore, it has been the practice in forming metal tug wheel rims for bull wheel structures, to first bend the flan es of the rim at right angles to the facet ereof and then curve each section in an identical manner so that when the sections are secured together, a circular rim having the desired diameter is formed. In employing this method of rim formation, the curving of the section causes the flanged meta to wrinkle and become deformed to such an extent that the resistance to' lateral and radial strains and stresses is lessened.

In carrying out my invention, I aim to provide all of the desired advantages hereinbefore named as well as overcome the objections and difiiculties here-to-fore encountered. That is to say, I provide a bull wheel structure and, particularly, a "tu wheel structure wherein I accomplish strength, rigidity of parts and lightness in weight as well as ease in assembly and disassembly and ease in transportation.

One of the features of my invention is the provision of a novel means for applying, the bull ropes to the tug wheel which greatly facilitates this operation and at the .same time reduces to a minimum the wear and tear on these ropes incident thereto.

Another feature of my invention is the provision of a tug wheel rim which is of such shape in cross section and of such material as to prevent any deformation of any part of the rim during the curving of it to the proper circumferential contour.

Other 7 and further features of my invention will be obvious by referring to the following specification and to the draw-' 1n s annexed hereto, whereinigure 1 is a perspective, view of a bull wheel structure embodying my invention, the tug wheel being shown with a sectiion of its rim removed.

Figure 2 is a section taken through the tug wheel rim and showing a position of a bull rope during its application to the tug wheel. v

Figure 3 is a side view of the tug wheel, showmgthe method of application of the bull ropes to the tug wheel, various positions of a bull rope during its application being shown by full and dotted lines.

Figure 4 is a fragmental view of the inside of the tug wheel rim showing the ends of the sections of the rim abutting and joined together.

- In the drawings, I have shown a. bull wheel structure embodying my invention and which comprises a tubular shaft 1 carrying adjacent its one end a tug wheel 2 and adjacent its other end a. brake wheel 3.

My tug wheel may comprise a hub con sisting of two annular angle members,each of which is made up of a horizontal leg 4: and a vertical leg 5.

The horizontal legs are A plurality of spokes necte set of spokes 6 are likewise connected 'ures 1 and 2. In

' tug wheel.

' cumference of the rim that they are spaced apart and extend inwardly toward each other and the integral Vertical legs extend upwardly and parallel.

6 are rigidly conto one of the vertical legs 5 and are arranged tangentially thereto and a similar to the other vertical leg 5. It will be noted that the spokes 6 in the opposing sets are arranged in a staggered relation to each other. Each of the spokes 6' is connected at its outer end to the tug wheel rim in a manner to be described. This construction provides a structure sufficiently rigid and secure to withstand the strains and stresses im ed thereon.

he tug wheel rim is best shown in Figthe form shown, the rim is made up of sections 7, each of which is identical in form and struct There are four such sections 7, the number of sections depending, mainly, upon the size of tug wheel employed. Each of the sections 7 is made of a strong and durable metal which is in the form of a corrugated metal piece which is uniform in thickness. Each of the corrugated metal sections is curved lengthwise to a predetermined radius so that when the four sections are'sec'ured in place, a rim is formed to a true circle and of the desired diameter. It ,may, however, be desirable to form this rim all in one piece.

The corrugated metal sections that I employ may be of any desired width to suit the prevailing conditions of use. By corrugaxting the metal, longitudinal and parallel ves such as 8 and 9 are formed as shown in Figures 1 and 2, said grooves extending around the entire circumference of the rim when the sections 7 are connected together in place. The grooves 8 and 9 are employed as rope grooves for holding the well known bull ropes when they are in place upon the It, will be understood that the rope grooves 8 and 9 are of such a depth that the bull ropes remain in place when applied to the tug wheel without further with their respective sections and extend inwardl toward the shaft 1 in a sloping manner t e angle ofinclination being substan- "tia y 45 degrees to the peripheral plane of .the rim. Land extend uniformly Such sloping flanges are formed throughout the cirwhen the sections 7 are in place. By this flange construction, a bull rope guide which extends throughout the circumference of the rim and which extends inwardly toward the shaft 1, is proinwardly vided whereby the application of the bull v fact that it is impracticable to form the sections of a sectional wheel rim to the desired curvature, when the flanges at the sides of the rim are formed at right angles or substantially right angles to the face of the rim, without causing deformation in the flanges of the section. The said deformation is generally caused by the wrinkling of the flanges during the curving of the section, which weakens it, and, consequently, weakens the tug wheel, whereby its resistance to thestrains and stresses imposed thereon is dangerously reduced. In my invention such a tendency of the section 7 to become deformed is eliminated by employing the sloping flanges 10 and 11, said flanges extending inwardly toward the shaft 1 atan angle of substantially 45 degrees to the peripheral plane of the rim. Further, the type of rim shown in the drawings with the sloping flanges 10 and 11, the strength, rigidity and endurance of the tug wheel are in no way lessened, but the ability of this rim to Withstand lateral stresses and strains is materially increased. Also, my invention provides a tug wheel rim and, consequently, a tug wheel, uniform in strength and rigidity throughout its entire circumference.

In assembling my tug wheel rim, the adjacent ends of the sections 7 abut each other the sections as shown in to the spokes 6 by gusset plates 15. Each gusset plate is bent at such an angle that one end fits to and is connected to the rim flange and the other end fits to and is connected to the spoke 6. v

The gudgeon structure which I employ may comprise the gudgeon 16, having an annular flange 17 with bolt holes spaced around the same at re lar intervals and adapted to be held in p ace upon the tubular shaft 1 by means of tension bolts 18 passing through the hub angle 5. Extending rom the flange 18 is a tapered or wedge-like circular flange 19 whose exterior by employing the inner surface of thein circumferential alignment. The sections will approximate the internal contour of the shaft 1. With this construction, by tightening up the nuts on the bolts 18, the circular flange 19 will bedrawn inward in the shaft 1 with a wedge-like action, thereby effecting a tight fit with the shaft. It is obvious that this tight fit will be maintained at all times,

thereby avoiding looseness of fit and danger of back-lash and insuring a firm and rigid gudgeon at all times.

A plurality of plates 20 are rigidly secured to the rim flange 11 at regular intervals in its circumference, said plates being bent at such an angle that one portion fits to and is rigidly connected to the flan e 11 while the-other portion extends inward y toward the shaft 1 at approximately right angles to the face of the rim.

Each of the inwardly extending portions of'the plates 20 is provided with a hole through which a bolt 21 is to be passed, said bolt being adapted to hold in place the hand-holds, 22, the purpose of which is well known.

The portion of the shaft 1 adjacent the tug wheel is adapted to store a. reserve supply of cable and in order to separate the reserve supply of cablefrom the active cable, I provide the spool 23 which is adjustably arranged on the shaft 1 as shown in Figure 1-.

The outer flange 10 of the tug wheel rim is provided with an outwardly extending projection 24, commonly called a dog. This projection 24 is adapted, inthe usual manner, to assist in the application and removal of the bullropes to and from the tug wheel. It will be noted that in using my invention, it will be necessary to employ only one projection 24' and the use of the ordinary helpers may be dispensed with. In Figure 3, I show the method of application of the bull ropes to the tug wheel when employing my invention, various positions of a bull rope 25 during its application to the tug wheel being shown by full and dotted lines. In

Figure 2, I show the relative positions of the projection 24, flange 10, and rope 25 during the application ofthe bull rope to the tug wheel.

The entire bull wheel structure which I tation is facilitated thereby decreasing the possibility of distortion or destruction, and wherein strength, rigidity of parts, weather endurance, ease of manipulation and lightness in weight are duly provided for; all of which tends to increase the over-all efliciency of bull wheel structures and, consequently, of the drilling rigs, and which reduces maintenance cost to a minimum.

Having thus described my what I claim is:

1. A tug rim for oil, gas, and artesian well drilling rigs having a corrugated surface with one of its sides sloped to an angle to form an inclined plane guiding surface for guiding the ropes up over the high point of the first corrugation and into the adjacent groove on the rim.

2. A tug rim for oil, gas, and artesian well drilling rigs having a corrugated sur face and having one of its sides sloped at an angle of substantially 45.

invention,

In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature.

RICHARD R. BLOSS. 

